October 2024 – Travels with Ali

~ What’s On Your Bookshelf – October ~

A challenge hosted by Deb, Jo, Sue and Donna. Look no further for your latest recommendations in reading from these wonderful hosts.

What I’ve been reading this month is a real mix of genres. I’ll start with the latest, which was a book club choice.

“Think before you speak. Read before you think.”
Fran Lebowitz

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow which I’m sure many of you have seen, read or heard about. This was a Sunday Times best seller two years ago. I was put off initially by the synopsis, as it’s essentially about gaming. I did read that it’s not all about gaming, which is true. There are a lot of chapters about gaming though!

Sam and Sadie meet when they are children in a hospital. While Sam is in recovery from a tragic accident, Sadie is there because her sister is having treatment for cancer. They bond over their love of games. They lose touch for many years but then come together again due to their love of gaming.

I thought it was more for younger adults, but I eventually come to love the story of their friendship and love for each other. Gabrielle Zevin is a fantastic writer and brings to life the different characters throughout the book. Extremely clever book which stayed with me long after I had finished it. 5/5

“IN THE CASE OF GOOD BOOKS, THE POINT IS NOT TO SEE HOW MANY OF THEM YOU CAN GET THROUGH, BUT RATHER HOW MANY
CAN GET THROUGH TO YOU.”
-Mortimer J. Adler

I have read Kerryn Mayne’s previous book, Lenny Marks gets away with Murder, so was looking forward to reading the new one.

Most of her life Joy, the mother of twins, Andie and Cassie has been lying to them. To explain why they can’t go to school and have friends, she tells them they are from the future. They have to go back on their 21st birthday. Things don’t go as planned because on the day in question, Joy is found dead in the living room armchair.

A quirky book indeed, as we find out by going back in time, what prompted Joy to tell this outrageous lie. It was a fun read, if you suspend disbelief and just go along for the ride. 4/5

“Reading is an exercise in empathy, an exercise in walking in someone else’s shoes for a while”.
Malorie Blackman

Clare Chambers is one of my favourite authors and I’ve loved all of her books. This book is based on a true story and is quite shocking in some respects.

The story is set in the 1960’s and Helen is working in a psychiatric hospital as an art therapist. She is also having an affair with a handsome married doctor. She has been quite happy about this for many years, until the hidden man came to stay at the hospital.
A 37 year old man, called William Tapping, has been found living in a derelict house who hasn’t been outside in decades. This is a beautiful story told from different viewpoints. We go back in time to learn the background of why William was hidden away. Highly recommend 5/5

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~ Stairs and Steps for Monochrome Madness ~

Aletta from Now At Home is the host for this week’s Monochrome Madness. The theme is Stairs and Steps.

“You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step. ”
Martin Luther King, Jr.

Escher Painting, Melbourne — Painting of Street in Scanno, Abruzzi
by M.C. Escher

“All rising to great places is by a winding stair”
Gautama Buddha

**The stairs at the Ruins of Ephesus, Turkey**

Nostalgic Journey: My Adventures in Guilin, China

This week for Lens Artist, Sofia has challenged us to look back. I was inspired by her post to dig out some old photos of my first trip to China. Like many of you I have numerous photos of long ago travels. Many are in albums but there are a great deal of loose ones.

I took a trip to Guilin in 1989 and had been in Hong Kong for a few months. I had already met Anthony but had some free time between jobs. It was an organised trip made through a local travel agent, one of those all inclusive tours. As I was travelling solo I thought this was the best option. There would be no stress about where to eat and what to do.

I had agreed to share a room, quite brave when I think about it now. When I arrived at the hotel, which was a Holiday Inn, I met the other people in the tour group. I quickly deduced that the only other single person was a man, who was with two friends. I had a slight panic attack until I got to the counter and was told I was being upgraded to a King Size room. Phew, awkwardness averted.

The views from my large balcony. I was very impressed!

One of the tours was a trip down the River Li. Guilin is famous for its towering lime stone cliffs and beautiful scenery. The trip was meant to take three hours, with a bus back. As it was the dry season, the boat trip itself took 6 hours! I had got to know the others on the trip, so we spent this time chatting and taking photos. I do remember there being no drinking water, only Coke.

All photos were taken on an old film type camera. I can’t remember the make. After scanning these, I did some editing and brought them back to life.

At some bends in the river, the men sailing the boat had to jump out. They tried to push the boat through the extremely shallow water. We did wonder if we would have to also jump out to help.

Without a care in the world, enjoying the views and thinking how amazing China is.

The famous Elephant Rock at the end of the trip. There were many stalls selling small artefacts and gifts.

One of the American men on my tour, he was travelling with his daughter. We both ended up buying a hat each.

Before reading Sofia’s post I hadn’t thought about this trip for years. Now I’m remembering small details from the trip that have been locked away for a few decades.

Getting Creative for Monochrome Madness – Flowers

I saw Leanne’s fantastic gallery of flowers in black and white and it inspired me to experiment with different editing tools.

I watched a technique on Snapseed to create a black background. Several attempts and a great deal of time later, I achieved something! I also had a look around my garden which has many white flowers blooming at the moment. I altered a few settings on my S24 to see what other images I could achieve.

This is a hobby that would take up hours of your time. It was fun to do, quite challenging but I did learn quite a few tips from various websites.

Thanks Leanne for your inspiration – Monochrome Madness

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Living it up in Lively Legian, Bali

After checking out of the Novotel, we took Grab Cabs to our next destination, The Pullman in Legian. Upon checking in I found that my request for adjoining rooms had not been accepted! We were all on the same floor though, us around the corner with Elena and Damian in two rooms with a room in between. I was a bit miffed as I had asked twice for this and in plenty of time. Never mind, time to move on and get settled for the next four days of more fun in the sun.

In the evenings there was always a PG film or cartoon showing.
Pull up a Seat and enjoy the show.

Our room was more than okay and the balcony overlooked some beautiful frangipani trees. I saw cute squirrels hopping from branch to branch, peering up at me.

After swimming in all the pools and eating lunch at the hotel, we headed elsewhere for dinner. Elena and I had our wires crossed as to the restaurant I had chosen. Ending up walking further than I had planned only to find that it was “Drag Queen” night. The place was packed and not entirely suitable for young eyes. Always restaurants aplenty in Legian, so we just ate next door.

The Pullman featured three pools, one was adults only. This one overlooked the ocean and a cocktail or two are easily available to watch the sun go down. With Legian being on the west side of the island meant we got to see some glorious sunsets.

One afternoon Rosie and I were having a siesta in the room and ventured outside to watch the squirrels. They were extremely tame, but I chickened out at the last minute to actually hand feed them.

As it was school holidays the breakfast buffet was crowded and noisy, also expensive. There was a long wait for coffee from a state-of-the-art coffee machine, operated by one man, and no other options available. So the next day we opted to eat at nearby cafes.

**Exploring around the cafe while waiting for breakfast**

Anthony continued his daily regime of walking two hours everyday, even in the heat and humidity. I managed a 15 minute walk to the shopping centre nearby. Holidays in Bali are all about relaxation, reading and swimming for me, with a cocktail to hand.

We had a drink one evening on the beach and watched the sun go down.

We didn’t venture to the beach much in the daytime. The sea on this side of the island is good for surfing but not swimming.

One night Anthony and I walked back along the shore. The waves gently lapping around our ankles and enjoying the cool breeze. As we bent down to put out shoes back on a not so gentle wave jumped up and soaked us. Luckily we didn’t have much further to go and squished back to the hotel.

All in all there is something for everyone in Legian. A place to go if you want to party all day and night. Restaurants, bars and cafes line the roads and the beach. Upmarket hotels and budget places jostle for space, most with an oasis of calm and tranquility at the back. A wonderful time creating memories with family.

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In this post I’ve Set the Mood, and Pulled up a Seat to watch the trees and leaves.

Family Adventures in Benoa and Legian, Bali

I decided to change things up this time for our family holiday in Bali. Four days in peaceful Benoa and four days in lively Legian.

It was extremely late by the time we arrived due to a delayed departure. The lobby was large and spacious with enormous high ceilings. Checking in took a while but we were finally given our keys and taken to our rooms. We were assigned interconnecting rooms for Elena, Damian and the kids, and an upgrade for myself and Anthony. There are two parts to the Novotel and the block we were staying in was across the road and away from the beach. I was disappointed to start but after the first night was feeling quite happy with this arrangement. It seemed less busy and the adult and kids pools were just below us.

Novotel Swimming Pool, Benoa, Bali — View from our balcony

I had a great night’s sleep, but Anthony said it was too noisy for him. When I stepped onto the balcony I realised that we were very near the road.

The road doesn’t look too busy in this shot, but the bikes are a big problem!

Breakfast was served in the beach block across the road. This is manned by two attendants who try their hardest to stop the traffic. The bikes especially just drove around them and the cars mostly ignored them!

The above photos show some of the artwork on display around the Novotel.

A buffet was on offer serving up all kinds of traditional food plus fresh fruit. There was an egg station plus waffles, pancakes and donuts for the kids. Something for everyone.

Over the next four days, we swam in the ocean, played in the pools and relaxed. We found some fabulous restaurants for dinner but stayed at the hotel for lunch.

One day we took a tour on a glass bottomed boat to Turtle Island. The kids loved the boat. Out at sea was exceptionally busy with all kinds of activities. I thought I had seen most water sports, but all of a sudden we saw a flying lilo with someone holding on for dear life.

The sea here is tidal so the optimum time for swimming was around 1 pm. Anthony and I swam every day, but the kids preferred the pools. There is a forest of seaweed, undulating beneath the sea and I wasn’t keen on swimming over this. The feeling of feathery tendrils sweeping your legs was most disconcerting.

Waiting patiently for the tide to come in

Some more of the sculptures around the hotel

One of the things we enjoy about Bali is the food, always tasty and full of flavour. Unlike the others I prefer something not too spicy, whereas they all have a dish of sambal on the side.

Some of the dishes we ate. The top dish is called Rijsttafel, a Dutch word that translates to Rice Table. It consists of many (forty is not an unusual number) side dishes served in small portions, accompanied by rice prepared in several different ways. Popular side dishes include egg rolls, sambals, satay, fish, fruit, vegetables, pickles, and nuts. Source: Wikipedia. One of Anthony and Elena’s favourites.

Family dinners were not complete without Ipads and earphones. This meant we could all have a leisurely dinner. Although you couldn’t ask for better behaved munchkins.